O'Malley appointed to BAC International
Jerry O'Malley was appointed to the Executive Board of the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers. He was sworn in by International President John Flynn on Feb. 21 during the union's winter Executive Council meeting in Miami, Fla.

The former BAC Local 1 Michigan business manager began his new duties immediately, filling the unexpired term of retiring Executive Vice President Frank Stupar. He will be one of three BAC executive vice presidents.

"It's quite an honor to be chosen for this position," O'Malley said. "I miss being home already, but this is a tremendous opportunity. I'm up for the challenge." He said he will get a better ideas of his new duties in the near future.

A Detroit native, O'Malley, 56, began his apprenticeship with former Local 2 in 1964. He became Local 2 business agent in 1988, later serving as secretary-treasurer. In 1994, he assumed the business manager/presidency of the newly merged Local 1. He has also been an executive board member of the Detroit Building Trades Council

Current Local 1 Secretary-Treasurer Ray Chapman will take over as business manager/president while Field Rep. Charlie Colo will now become secretary-treasurer.

Speedier system for jobless claims
The Michigan Unemployment Agency has received a second federal grant that is expected to reduce delays in the issuing of first checks to claimants.

The U.S. Department of Labor recently gave the agency $5.8 million, on top of $3.9 million last October, to complete work on the agency's wage record system. The money will be used for computer programming changes, improvements in wage data collection and staff education and procedures.

Wage record is a process of using quarterly employee wage information supplied by employers to establish unemployment benefit claims.

"For the unemployed, wage record will let them know immediately after filing their claims how much they may be entitled to and for how long," said Unemployment Agency Director Jack Wheatley. "Wage record will save Michigan employers the time and expense of filling out and mailing in half a million unemployment insurance forms annually."

Claimants currently wait up to two weeks after filing a claim before learning what they may receive in jobless benefits.

More money sought for federal building
Record sums for highway and transportation spending, as well as a sharp increase in other federal construction spending, are part of President Clinton's $1.8 trillion fiscal 2001 spending plan released last month.

Proposed spending on highways ($30 billion) and transit ($6 billion) are at all-time highs.
Republican leaders in Congress, looking to increase tax cuts, blasted the spending plan. There are cuts in some budgets, overall, it appears as if Clinton is ending his administration by trying to provide a nice boost to the nation's building economy.

If Clinton's budget is approved, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration budget would jumps 12%, to $426 million. The biggest increases are for federal compliance assistance and enforcement. OSHA wants $1 million for a survey aimed at large construction contractors at high-risk job sites.